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00:00All new morning rollout leads should be in clay on 105.1 to bounce. You know, August 17th is
00:05National Nonprofit Day and if you're not watching the news or paying any attention, nonprofits now
00:11more than ever are taking a bigger role in growth in our society because, well, they're who most of
00:20the responsibility falls on when the government doesn't pick up what they're supposed to be doing.
00:24So nonprofits around the country are doing everything they can and we've got some great
00:28ones right here in the city, including the people we're going to speak to today. Shawana
00:34is in the studio with us. Good morning. Good morning. Thank you for taking some time for
00:39hanging out with us. Absolutely. So talk for a minute about the organization that you're
00:45working with and why this is something that you decided needs to be done, needs to happen,
00:52needs, the city needs it. So I have been doing Silent Cry Inc. for the last 23 years. I work
01:02between New York, Detroit and California and the reason I deem it is necessary is out of my own
01:08silent tears because I understand that there's gaps between reality versus fiction and what's really
01:20necessary. And I think that we're missing what is necessary. We talk about Maslow's Law and yet we
01:28don't meet the needs. We talk about restoring mental health, yet we don't have mental health treatment
01:35facilities. We talk about making sure there's enough food and resources in the community, but yet when we
01:42get to community, we give them paper and nothing tangible. And I think it is my duty. It is my
01:50purpose. It is my passion to meet the needs of people one by one, to be a catalyst of change, to make
02:00sure that you go to community with food, to make sure you go to community with clothes, to make sure
02:05you go to people with resources other than words, because we don't have time for words anymore.
02:11Alicia and I talk about this daily. We do a thing called What's Good Detroit, where we focus on people
02:16that are doing good in the city. And it's kind of, doesn't it sound so familiar? Because one of the
02:22things we say is when the community helps the community out, that's the best kind of.
02:28No matter how big or small it is, that is very important to see your community helping each other.
02:34And I think the one thing that after researching Silent Cry that I love so much is that not only
02:39are you obviously advocating for people who are dealing with mass incarceration, gun violence,
02:44and loss, but you're not also just focusing on the victims because they're not the only victims.
02:50You're also worried about the families and their friends and their community and how they're impacted
02:54by one situation. So why was that super important for you? Because a lot of nonprofits don't even think
03:01about the outcome of how the families and how the other people surrounding the victims
03:06actually are affected as well. Because I lived in the ecosystem where my brother was murdered
03:12December 24th, 1986 on Christmas Eve. And I remember the police knocking on the door.
03:18I was in a pink robe with ponytails. I was nine years old. And I understood that was the second major loss
03:29of my life. And I understood violence in that moment. In that moment, I understood what it was for somebody
03:41to be taken. Mm hmm. And I realized that people make shrines to the dead. And we forget about the living.
03:49Whoo. Yeah. And you spend time in a cemetery, but you don't take living people to the park.
03:55Mm hmm. And I realized that if we do not treat the entire ecosystem of that family and those friends,
04:03then we got dead pictures up of dead people and no living people taking portraits.
04:10You hear that you hear the phrase quite a bit that every violent crime has more than one victim.
04:15Yeah. And that's really what it's about. One of the big things that you focus on is trauma recovery,
04:21like getting people over trauma that they might not even know is is really weighing on them.
04:28Um, when did you come to that, that that trauma recovery was one of the most important things
04:35that you could do? First, you got to start with yourself. Mm hmm. Um, in my ecosystem, in my family,
04:44um, I'm adopted, but my real family is one big trauma. I was born in prison. Um,
04:52most of my family's been to prison, they have substance abuse, they have alcohol use, like,
04:59they are a silent cry. And so I had to go to prison to understand that I had trauma before I got there
05:11and it exacerbated it. But then I realized, like, my whole family has generational trauma. We don't
05:18have generational wealth. Right. And we don't heal our trauma. And what does that look like? And I said,
05:24what, what will it cost me to be whole? Because I don't want to have children that are this
05:29dysfunctional because this is what we're passing down is dysfunction. Right. Yeah. And nobody ever
05:36says, you know, like, we talk about science and trauma and we talk about healing, but nobody ever
05:42says that semen passes trauma too. Like these are unspoken. So if we do not heal men,
05:49then they, they're going to traumatize your children in the womb with the DNA. If we do not
05:56heal women, you're going to raise your children from broken spaces. And I apologize to my 23 year old
06:03the time because I said, even though your mama was 23, I just came out of prison. I'm still in my trauma.
06:10I'm still 15 years old and I'm broken. And now I'm trying to raise you.
06:14And nothing good can come of that. Right. Because I don't have the tools. I'm not equipped. And I
06:22don't have people that are equipped. Right. So now we're just going to keep creating trauma. And I said,
06:29enough is enough. How was that for you and your family? Like breaking that down? Obviously,
06:36it's statistically known that in African-American households, mental health and conversations like
06:40this are just not exactly non-existent. So when you brought this conversation to your family,
06:47what was that process? Because I bet that there's a lot of people who want to start these
06:51conversations, but don't know how to facilitate them or what ways they should bring this conversation
06:57up to their families. Or even some of the telltale signs they might see exactly of undiagnosed trauma,
07:02you know, of something that somebody is dealing with. Absolutely. And for me, like I said,
07:09I was exhausted by the back of my aces, but prison accelerated a whole new, whole new deal.
07:15And coming home, people didn't understand why I would get in a shower with flip-flops on.
07:23Like people don't understand. And it's hard to explain. Right. Um, why you scared to use a stove?
07:30Because I had a stinger, which is a coil and some water in a garbage can. And people just think,
07:35you know, you're just weird, but like, no, I've been in a place where this is normal.
07:41And people just think, go home from prison and be well. How can I be well when I didn't go in well,
07:49I went in traumatized and now I'm. Cause it's not like they help you within.
07:53No. Yeah. And so what are you expecting? And I realized the aces plus post-traumatic prison
08:01disorder, I was a disaster. And the moment I really realized I needed to get well,
08:08I was ready to commit suicide because healing hurts. And I created a hashtag
08:15healing is like birth in a baby with no anesthetic. You just got to go through it. Healing doesn't feel
08:20good. And I think that's why in African-American community, we don't want to get healed because
08:25we like to be numb and we like things that feel good. We don't like pain and healing hurts.
08:33You're not wrong about that. That's as a mic drop right there for sure. I mean, that's,
08:38that is so back to national nonprofit day, you know, the messages is clear, you know, and it's obvious.
08:47And I think each person, if you say you don't feel it a little bit, you're lying, especially right now.
08:53Yeah, exactly. So how should or could people engage with what you have going on? What, what is,
09:02what is a way that, that someone who's just seeing this or just hearing this is like, wait a minute,
09:06I identify with this and I want to, I want to be involved.
09:09I would implore you to go to silentcryinc.org, which is my website. You can sign up to volunteer,
09:18you can donate. Because if you cannot be a part of something, donating is being a part of something.
09:28Mm hmm. But if you can volunteer, sign up to do that. If you can make phone calls to legislators,
09:37we welcome you to volunteer and do that. Because right now nonprofits are under attack more than we've
09:45ever been under attack in this country. We are losing money to serve.
09:52We are losing capacity to serve.
10:01And we don't know where our next resources are coming from.
10:06While we watch the rich get rich and the poor slide down the scale of beyond poverty,
10:12when we are cutting resources, we are cutting daycares, we are cutting pre-K,
10:19we are cutting food from food banks.
10:26We're in trouble. And I'm not above saying silent cry is going to be silently crying because it is a
10:33four alarm fire for nonprofits right now. It is a war on anyone trying to help those that are less
10:43fortunate. It is a war on people trying to help people in poverty.
10:48It is a war if you are trying to help black people, LGBTQ people and Hispanics and climate change.
10:56And anything that does not look like racism and white supremacy, there is a war going on.
11:01And we are not going to downplay the times that we are in. But nonprofits are suffering.
11:06And if there is anybody who has a lifeline, and I'm not just speaking for silent cry because that would be
11:16disingenuous and selfish. If you can resonate with it, donate to it if you have it.
11:21If you do not have money, give your time and your talent. But do something.
11:30Because silency is complacency.
11:32Silent is complicit to violence. And right now, nonprofits are being
11:40sanctioned for things that we did not have anything to do with. I have lost
11:43money because they say I fit under DEI. Because I'm a black woman. And DEI didn't have anything to do
11:50with me. But I'm currently paying the price.
11:53One, I just want to say, if you don't get your flowers enough, thank you for being a pillar of
12:04not only strength, but also inspiring strength. Because like you said, your story and you being
12:11a survivor, that could have been where you ended. Your advocacy is the legacy that you are leaving.
12:17And you are inspiring people daily to actually get up and do something about it. Because I know
12:23a lot of people even right now in conversations are always like, well, I wish I could do this or,
12:28you know, this is crazy things are happening in the news all the time, but don't actually get up and
12:34do things until it's right in their face. And that's too late. Because it shouldn't get to a point
12:40where now, oh, it's affecting me now. Now it matters. It should have, it shouldn't matter because
12:46it's affecting someone that could be like you. Absolutely. So I just wanted to give you your
12:51flowers for creating Silent Cry. And not only creating that, but also uplifting other nonprofits.
12:56Because like you said, not talking about other nonprofits would be selfish. That is selfish. And
13:02you only do that where you're in a season of lack in your mind. Because there has to be enough for
13:07everybody. Right. There are organizations I think that are amazing in this city and in this state.
13:13And it would be egregious if I tell people only go support Silent Cry. Right now there's amazing
13:21people doing voting work. There's amazing people doing maternal work. And we are all suffering the same.
13:29And we all need help. So maybe you're not into gun violence and advocacy and legislation. Maybe you
13:35really support maternal health. Or go support mother injustice. Maybe you end up voting and you're
13:41engaged and we're losing our democracy. Go support VAC. Voter Access for All. If you want a 504 to go
13:49give money to, support Michigan Liberation. Like I'm not that selfish. Because it has to be enough.
13:56Right. If you care about children, go give focused hopes and money so they can restore these children.
14:01Right. Because that's community. Right. That's loving on everybody equally.
14:10If your desire is to help people that are going to go out on the corner with no news cameras and give
14:21everything until I have nothing, then Silent Cry is where you should give your resources. Because that is
14:27what I'm going to do. But you got to give where your heart feels good.
14:35And I'm okay if that's not to me. Because if you give to the extensions of the olive branch,
14:39you have given to me because people will be serviced. Because I'm here for humanity to be built.
14:45Not for Shawana. Not for Silent Cry. I'm here for legacy for black people and brown people to be okay.
14:50Yes. And not wither in this season. And that means collectively, I need everybody to win.
14:59I know that's right. I think the message is action. Take action. I mean, it doesn't have to be
15:06Nonprofit Day to take action. Right. It can be a Tuesday. It can be any day. It should be any day.
15:12And that's kind of what, you know, how we started the interview off and you really pushed on it.
15:18Nonprofits are under attack. The funding is not there. And now is the time. You know,
15:25you can't wait for somebody to help somebody else when you can help somebody else. Exactly.
15:30So there you go. And one last push for Silent Cry and how they can get activated with what you are doing.
15:35So you can go to my website, which is silentcryinc.org. You can find me on Instagram at Silent Cry NY.
15:44You can also find me on Facebook at Silent Cry Nonprofit. Please, please, I implore you, donate, volunteer.
15:57Every dollar counts. So if you don't think a dollar makes a difference, it does.
16:03Obama won an election on minuscule money because it adds up and nothing is too little and nothing is too
16:10great. And if you are from corporate America and you have not given up on the fact that George Floyd
16:16died and you are not rescinding your good generosity, then we actually need corporate sponsors in this
16:24moment to sustain. And if you are a funder and we have to come find you, well, here I am.
16:32So please fund me so I can help the people because we need resources in the streets to survive,
16:41to help people thrive, to help these children grow up to be good people.
16:45Because our democracy is at stake. And there are people that can save and can contribute. And so I
16:55believe in public-private partnerships. And I believe that corporate America still has a
17:00responsibility to Americans. Period. We shop with you. We spend our money with you. Black people are
17:08the highest spending dollar in this country. And we do not get it back like we give it. But in this
17:15season of lack in the industrial nonprofit nonprofit complex, I implore corporate America to step in.
17:26She said it better than I ever could. I know that's right.
17:29Shawana, thank you so much for coming in. Once again, the website, silentcryinc.com.org.
17:37Silentcryinc.org. So make sure you go check it out and get yourself educated, get some information.
17:42Thank you so much for coming in. Thank you so much.